March 8, 2025 • 9 mins
The Central District Stags came ahead of Auckland at the four-day Plunket Shield cricket match on Eden Park's outer oval.
Central Districts batsman Tom Bruce joined Piney to discuss.
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Speaker 1 (00:06):
You're listening to the Weekend Sport podcast with Jason Vine
from Newstalk ZEDB.
Speaker 2 (00:12):
During the week past Central Stags cricket captain Tom Bruce
posted the third highest score in New Zealand first class
cricket history three hundred and forty five against Auckland at
Eden Parks at Arroval, the highest first class score in
New Zealand since nineteen fifty two, when the late great
Bert Sutcliffe produced his national record of three hundred and
(00:35):
eighty five. In fact, Bert Sutcliffe is the only person
to score more runs in an innings than Tom Bruce.
He also scored three hundred and fifty five in a
Planket Shield match in nineteen fifty Tom Bruce batted for
almost nine and a half hours, his three hundred and
forty five coming off just four hundred and one balls,
thirty six fours and six six's. Tom Bruce's with us.
(00:56):
Congratulations mate, With the benefit of a couple of days hindsight,
how do you reflect back on this remarkable innings?
Speaker 3 (01:04):
Thanks having me, Yeah, yeah, it's all all a bit
surrealtive this, Yeah, it probably still hadn't sunk in I
think maybe, yeah, maybe once a career is done or
end of the season. I look back and I'll sort
of put it into context, and I'm obviously pretty proud
of the achievement. I'm proud of the now score that
many runs. But yeah, that's all feeling a bit surreal
(01:27):
at the moment.
Speaker 2 (01:28):
I bet you came into what twenty nine for two,
then that became seventy five for three. Was your early
intention really just to kind of steady the ship a bit?
Speaker 3 (01:37):
Yeah, we obviously we wanted a bowl first as well,
so it was a good toss to lose in the
end there, but yeah, we knew it was a green
wick at them. We wanted to make first use of it,
and so we sort of knew as a betting group that,
I mean, abe Elkan bowlers are going to put it
in some pretty testing areas and test us out there. Done. Yeah,
fortunately I was able to get through that and someting
(01:58):
knew once got through my first twenty thirty balls, and yeah,
I was seeing it a ride and it was feeling
pretty good. It was just about making sure you can
stick to your game plan for for long periods of
time and show that discipline, and yeah, fortunately it Yeah,
I was able to do that and tomorrow Earth. You know,
a school like that was just really pleasing, and you.
Speaker 2 (02:19):
Got together with a couple of your teammates for for
really good partnerships. He had a two hundred and ninety
two with Dane Cleaver for the fourth wicket, three hundred
and three with Josh Clarkson for the fifth, both new
records incidentally for the Central Stags. As far as partnerships
are concerned, How helpful was it to you to be
involved in such significant long partnerships during your own innings?
Speaker 3 (02:41):
Yeah, yeahs a better unit. You always talk about, you know,
building partnerships, you know, with a couple of guys, and
it was awesome to be out of bet with Dane
and Josh for that long and build those partnerships.
Speaker 1 (02:52):
You know.
Speaker 3 (02:52):
Obviously without those guys there and you know, there's there's sitting,
no way a bit of better to make three forty five,
So it was really crucial that those guys got going
as well, and you're just really pleased for them. Obviously,
Dane had been the form better for us in the
four days before Christmas, and it was just awesome that
he carried that form on and obviously Josh had hadn't
(03:12):
played a whole lot of ford A cricket before Christmas,
he was injured, so really stoked for him to get
some quality time in the middle. And both of them
played really mature knocks and it was just awesome to
sort of bounce off them and feed off there this
sort of energy as well in the middle, so it
was awesome. You know, a couple of my good mates
as well, So just really stoked for them to both
be able to get three figures as well.
Speaker 2 (03:34):
You're right there for nine and a half hours. Did
fatigue start to become a factor at any stage?
Speaker 3 (03:41):
Not really, No, I think you're sort of you just
become accustomed to it. Maybe if it was at the
start of the season and the body is not used
to betting so so long out in the middle, But yeah,
I think once we're in the crux of the season,
your body just becomes accustomed to betting. And you know,
fortunately we went running too many tight singles or anything
like that, so there's a few boundaries in between them,
(04:03):
and yeah, certainly we were able to, yeah, not become
fatigued or give too many chances.
Speaker 2 (04:11):
I've heard that you gave just two chances in the
entire innings. I certainly hope for the sake of whoever
dropped them that it wasn't. When you're on about fourteen
or something, what at what stage of the links did
you offer up a couple of, you know, little snippets
of hope to the Auckland side.
Speaker 3 (04:28):
Yeah, to be sare they were pretty tough ones. There
was a leg side something I was the spinner just
sort of lost balance. I was on about forty seven
I think then. And then there was one when I
was on I think like a one handed diving attempt.
So a couple of really tough chances. But yeah, certainly, yeah,
(04:52):
yes I've taken those. Obviously we wouldn't have been having
this conversation, and yeah, it wouldn't be wouldn't be where
we are now.
Speaker 2 (05:01):
It's funny a week ago you probably didn't think you'd
be saying the scenence I gave a chance when I
was on two ninety.
Speaker 3 (05:07):
As clearly not certainly not. I didn't score many too
many runs in the first floor four day games before Christmas,
so yeah, even even to be saying I've scored over
probably forty you know, it would have been really good. Yeah,
very very heavy.
Speaker 2 (05:23):
Were you aware of the records you were breaking along
the way?
Speaker 3 (05:29):
The only one I knew of was the Central Stags one,
the top top run score for them. I knew Peter
Ingram had to record at two forty seven a few
years ago. Ben Smith I was playing for them, and
he made two hundred and forty four, and obviously the
guys were talking about how he just missed out on
the record. So I knew that one, but I didn't
(05:49):
know anything else of the sorts or any of the
partnership records until the end of the day. So it's
one of those ones you don't really look too much
into those sort of just probably happened afterwards. But yeah're
pretty cool to be up there. Was it the third
third highest and I'm playing at Shield and well first
(06:10):
class in New Zeland behind you know, the legion that
was Bert Cyclists.
Speaker 2 (06:15):
When you get to three hundred and forty odd, do
you start to think about getting four hundred.
Speaker 3 (06:22):
Like I was. I had a few people sort of
messaging and saying, oh, you know, you should just keep
adding and keep adding and don't worry about declaring. But
we yeah, you know, trying to get to four hundred
and like look break Brian Lar's record or something like that.
But no, it was one of those ones when we
were bat in first, we we didn't have a number
in mind when we wanted to declare, but it was
(06:43):
probably helpful that I did get out when I did,
and we were just able to clear soon after that,
and once Clark he had got us to seven hundred,
So yeah, it was just fortunately we went from six
hundred to seven hundred pretty quickly, so we were able
to get going and just sort of runs and just
once we got seven hundred, it was yeah, finally pool
And so it was always going to be declaring once
(07:06):
we got a number, regardless of what if I was
still betting or if Karky was still betting.
Speaker 2 (07:10):
So yeah, you mentioned before about the early part of
the season. Yeah, four planket shield matches. He had six
beats for seventy nine runs total. Why was former but
hard to come by with the red ball early in
the in the season.
Speaker 3 (07:25):
Yeah, Look, I just struggled that first part. I think
I was put too much expectations on myself, to be honest,
which then probably hampered Yeah, just my clarity and decision
making out in the middle. So yeah, certainly I played
for a bit more freedom this last innings and just
went back to basics really, So I've got a pretty
simple game turn and a pretty simple technique, so once
(07:47):
I sort of stick with that, and like I said,
just show discipline and my decision making over a long
periods of time. You know, I know I can score
runs and school them quickly. So yeah, it was just
back to basics really. But yeah, certainly certain struggled those
first four games and certainly felt like I owed the
team of fair few runs. So you said, there's seven
(08:07):
year uns and six innings, Yeah, one and two flash,
So definitely, oh the boys for your runs out there.
Speaker 2 (08:13):
But then went into the white ball staff terrific three
hundred and thirty nine runs at fifty six and striking
at one fifty seven and the super smash four hundred
and thirty four trophy runs and ten inning striking it
better than a run a ball. So clearly it's possible
to play yourself into red ball form with the white.
Speaker 1 (08:29):
Ball, is it?
Speaker 3 (08:30):
Yeah? Absolutely? I think you know, guys sort of chop
and change between white bull and red bull pretty quickly now,
and you have to adapt pretty quickly. So I think
the white ball is really good for the red bull game.
You know, you can get into some really good positions
and play some strong shots, and it's just about doing that,
like I said, for long periods of time the red bulls.
So yeah, that's one of those things. I've been about
(08:54):
him really well and had a good season so far
other than those first four four day games. So it's
just nice to get out there spin spin a really
long and long time out there, and so it was
nice being able to go straight from white ball straight
into red bull and it certainly helped me the other day.
Speaker 2 (09:12):
It certainly did well. No one can ever take it
away from him, mate, three hundred and forty five. What
in an anxete you do, at some stage get the
chance to move out of the surreal stage and into
accepting exactly what you've done, because it's an absolutely outstanding
piece of cricket history. Time. Congratulations mate, and thanks for
taking the time for a chat. All the best for
the rest of the summer.
Speaker 3 (09:30):
Thanks very much having me much appreciate.
Speaker 2 (09:32):
No great to have you on Tom things. Indeed, Tom Bruce,
captain of the Central Stags and owner now of the
third highest score in first class cricket in New Zealand history,
three hundred and forty five of just four hundred and
one balls across nine and a half hours betting for
the Central Stags against the Auckland Aces at Eden Park's
Outer Oval during this week past.
Speaker 1 (09:51):
For more from Weekend Sport with Jason Fine, listen live
to news Talk zed B weekends from midday, or follow
the podcast on iHeartRadio
You're listening to the Weekend Sport podcast with Jason Vine
from Newstalk ZEDB.
Speaker 2 (00:12):
During the week past Central Stags cricket captain Tom Bruce
posted the third highest score in New Zealand first class
cricket history three hundred and forty five against Auckland at
Eden Parks at Arroval, the highest first class score in
New Zealand since nineteen fifty two, when the late great
Bert Sutcliffe produced his national record of three hundred and
(00:35):
eighty five. In fact, Bert Sutcliffe is the only person
to score more runs in an innings than Tom Bruce.
He also scored three hundred and fifty five in a
Planket Shield match in nineteen fifty Tom Bruce batted for
almost nine and a half hours, his three hundred and
forty five coming off just four hundred and one balls,
thirty six fours and six six's. Tom Bruce's with us.
(00:56):
Congratulations mate, With the benefit of a couple of days hindsight,
how do you reflect back on this remarkable innings?
Speaker 3 (01:04):
Thanks having me, Yeah, yeah, it's all all a bit
surrealtive this, Yeah, it probably still hadn't sunk in I
think maybe, yeah, maybe once a career is done or
end of the season. I look back and I'll sort
of put it into context, and I'm obviously pretty proud
of the achievement. I'm proud of the now score that
many runs. But yeah, that's all feeling a bit surreal
(01:27):
at the moment.
Speaker 2 (01:28):
I bet you came into what twenty nine for two,
then that became seventy five for three. Was your early
intention really just to kind of steady the ship a bit?
Speaker 3 (01:37):
Yeah, we obviously we wanted a bowl first as well,
so it was a good toss to lose in the
end there, but yeah, we knew it was a green
wick at them. We wanted to make first use of it,
and so we sort of knew as a betting group that,
I mean, abe Elkan bowlers are going to put it
in some pretty testing areas and test us out there. Done. Yeah,
fortunately I was able to get through that and someting
(01:58):
knew once got through my first twenty thirty balls, and yeah,
I was seeing it a ride and it was feeling
pretty good. It was just about making sure you can
stick to your game plan for for long periods of
time and show that discipline, and yeah, fortunately it Yeah,
I was able to do that and tomorrow Earth. You know,
a school like that was just really pleasing, and you.
Speaker 2 (02:19):
Got together with a couple of your teammates for for
really good partnerships. He had a two hundred and ninety
two with Dane Cleaver for the fourth wicket, three hundred
and three with Josh Clarkson for the fifth, both new
records incidentally for the Central Stags. As far as partnerships
are concerned, How helpful was it to you to be
involved in such significant long partnerships during your own innings?
Speaker 3 (02:41):
Yeah, yeahs a better unit. You always talk about, you know,
building partnerships, you know, with a couple of guys, and
it was awesome to be out of bet with Dane
and Josh for that long and build those partnerships.
Speaker 1 (02:52):
You know.
Speaker 3 (02:52):
Obviously without those guys there and you know, there's there's sitting,
no way a bit of better to make three forty five,
So it was really crucial that those guys got going
as well, and you're just really pleased for them. Obviously,
Dane had been the form better for us in the
four days before Christmas, and it was just awesome that
he carried that form on and obviously Josh had hadn't
(03:12):
played a whole lot of ford A cricket before Christmas,
he was injured, so really stoked for him to get
some quality time in the middle. And both of them
played really mature knocks and it was just awesome to
sort of bounce off them and feed off there this
sort of energy as well in the middle, so it
was awesome. You know, a couple of my good mates
as well, So just really stoked for them to both
be able to get three figures as well.
Speaker 2 (03:34):
You're right there for nine and a half hours. Did
fatigue start to become a factor at any stage?
Speaker 3 (03:41):
Not really, No, I think you're sort of you just
become accustomed to it. Maybe if it was at the
start of the season and the body is not used
to betting so so long out in the middle, But yeah,
I think once we're in the crux of the season,
your body just becomes accustomed to betting. And you know,
fortunately we went running too many tight singles or anything
like that, so there's a few boundaries in between them,
(04:03):
and yeah, certainly we were able to, yeah, not become
fatigued or give too many chances.
Speaker 2 (04:11):
I've heard that you gave just two chances in the
entire innings. I certainly hope for the sake of whoever
dropped them that it wasn't. When you're on about fourteen
or something, what at what stage of the links did
you offer up a couple of, you know, little snippets
of hope to the Auckland side.
Speaker 3 (04:28):
Yeah, to be sare they were pretty tough ones. There
was a leg side something I was the spinner just
sort of lost balance. I was on about forty seven
I think then. And then there was one when I
was on I think like a one handed diving attempt.
So a couple of really tough chances. But yeah, certainly, yeah,
(04:52):
yes I've taken those. Obviously we wouldn't have been having
this conversation, and yeah, it wouldn't be wouldn't be where
we are now.
Speaker 2 (05:01):
It's funny a week ago you probably didn't think you'd
be saying the scenence I gave a chance when I
was on two ninety.
Speaker 3 (05:07):
As clearly not certainly not. I didn't score many too
many runs in the first floor four day games before Christmas,
so yeah, even even to be saying I've scored over
probably forty you know, it would have been really good. Yeah,
very very heavy.
Speaker 2 (05:23):
Were you aware of the records you were breaking along
the way?
Speaker 3 (05:29):
The only one I knew of was the Central Stags one,
the top top run score for them. I knew Peter
Ingram had to record at two forty seven a few
years ago. Ben Smith I was playing for them, and
he made two hundred and forty four, and obviously the
guys were talking about how he just missed out on
the record. So I knew that one, but I didn't
(05:49):
know anything else of the sorts or any of the
partnership records until the end of the day. So it's
one of those ones you don't really look too much
into those sort of just probably happened afterwards. But yeah're
pretty cool to be up there. Was it the third
third highest and I'm playing at Shield and well first
(06:10):
class in New Zeland behind you know, the legion that
was Bert Cyclists.
Speaker 2 (06:15):
When you get to three hundred and forty odd, do
you start to think about getting four hundred.
Speaker 3 (06:22):
Like I was. I had a few people sort of
messaging and saying, oh, you know, you should just keep
adding and keep adding and don't worry about declaring. But
we yeah, you know, trying to get to four hundred
and like look break Brian Lar's record or something like that.
But no, it was one of those ones when we
were bat in first, we we didn't have a number
in mind when we wanted to declare, but it was
(06:43):
probably helpful that I did get out when I did,
and we were just able to clear soon after that,
and once Clark he had got us to seven hundred,
So yeah, it was just fortunately we went from six
hundred to seven hundred pretty quickly, so we were able
to get going and just sort of runs and just
once we got seven hundred, it was yeah, finally pool
And so it was always going to be declaring once
(07:06):
we got a number, regardless of what if I was
still betting or if Karky was still betting.
Speaker 2 (07:10):
So yeah, you mentioned before about the early part of
the season. Yeah, four planket shield matches. He had six
beats for seventy nine runs total. Why was former but
hard to come by with the red ball early in
the in the season.
Speaker 3 (07:25):
Yeah, Look, I just struggled that first part. I think
I was put too much expectations on myself, to be honest,
which then probably hampered Yeah, just my clarity and decision
making out in the middle. So yeah, certainly I played
for a bit more freedom this last innings and just
went back to basics really, So I've got a pretty
simple game turn and a pretty simple technique, so once
(07:47):
I sort of stick with that, and like I said,
just show discipline and my decision making over a long
periods of time. You know, I know I can score
runs and school them quickly. So yeah, it was just
back to basics really. But yeah, certainly certain struggled those
first four games and certainly felt like I owed the
team of fair few runs. So you said, there's seven
(08:07):
year uns and six innings, Yeah, one and two flash,
So definitely, oh the boys for your runs out there.
Speaker 2 (08:13):
But then went into the white ball staff terrific three
hundred and thirty nine runs at fifty six and striking
at one fifty seven and the super smash four hundred
and thirty four trophy runs and ten inning striking it
better than a run a ball. So clearly it's possible
to play yourself into red ball form with the white.
Speaker 1 (08:29):
Ball, is it?
Speaker 3 (08:30):
Yeah? Absolutely? I think you know, guys sort of chop
and change between white bull and red bull pretty quickly now,
and you have to adapt pretty quickly. So I think
the white ball is really good for the red bull game.
You know, you can get into some really good positions
and play some strong shots, and it's just about doing that,
like I said, for long periods of time the red bulls.
So yeah, that's one of those things. I've been about
(08:54):
him really well and had a good season so far
other than those first four four day games. So it's
just nice to get out there spin spin a really
long and long time out there, and so it was
nice being able to go straight from white ball straight
into red bull and it certainly helped me the other day.
Speaker 2 (09:12):
It certainly did well. No one can ever take it
away from him, mate, three hundred and forty five. What
in an anxete you do, at some stage get the
chance to move out of the surreal stage and into
accepting exactly what you've done, because it's an absolutely outstanding
piece of cricket history. Time. Congratulations mate, and thanks for
taking the time for a chat. All the best for
the rest of the summer.
Speaker 3 (09:30):
Thanks very much having me much appreciate.
Speaker 2 (09:32):
No great to have you on Tom things. Indeed, Tom Bruce,
captain of the Central Stags and owner now of the
third highest score in first class cricket in New Zealand history,
three hundred and forty five of just four hundred and
one balls across nine and a half hours betting for
the Central Stags against the Auckland Aces at Eden Park's
Outer Oval during this week past.
Speaker 1 (09:51):
For more from Weekend Sport with Jason Fine, listen live
to news Talk zed B weekends from midday, or follow
the podcast on iHeartRadio
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